


Drabbles and Ficlets

by orphan_account



Category: Being Human (UK), The Almighty Johnsons, The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Alternate Universe - Not Related, Angst, Baby Durins, But also, Children, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Incest, Kinda, M/M, Mention of Character Death, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Romance, Vampire!Kili, Violence, not really - Freeform, parenting
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-08
Updated: 2016-06-07
Packaged: 2018-06-07 03:57:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 13,803
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6784171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Various short stories from Tumblr. There's a short summary before each chapter.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. "How long can you hold your breath?"- Anders Johnson/John Mitchell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the SummerFRE, Prompt #79: "How long can you hold your breath?"

One of things Anders found out he loved about being in a committed, long-term relationship was how comfortable they learned to be around each other. Though he would never dream of telling anyone, not even Mitchell, he treasured the evenings they had together, though there were far too few of those for his taste.

They'd sit together in the living room, watching TV or reading, or just talking. It was comfortable, no romantic cutesy stuff, no awkward tension of both parties keeping up some kind of front, just the easy comfort of two people living together.

They'd talk about anything, from Mike's shitty attitude that day- "he seriously wants to be Odin, now, can you believe that wanker?"-  and Mitchell's day at work- frequently interrupted by "I don't need to know that, Mitchell!"- to the most serious and philosophical questions of life, for example if that shitty client of Anders' was maybe a distant Johnson cousin- "I swear to god, Mitchell, he is such a _cock_ , it's like having another douchebag brother."-or:

"Let's play interview with a vampire." They were sitting on the couch, Mitchell reading a book as Anders pretended to be looking over some contract or another that he really wasn't interested in. Mitchell's long legs were draped over Ander's lap, and Anders knew he shouldn't find that little pout Mitchell always got when he was engrossed in a book so adorable, but, well. It was. In the way that a 100-something year old vampire could be adorable.

"If you want to ask me a question, you could just say "Can I ask you a question?", you know." Mitchell grumbled, but there was no real reproach in his voice.

"Oh, could I? I never would have guessed, thanks, Lestat."

"You're welcome. So, what's the question?" Mitchell closed his book and finally gave Anders his undivided attention.

Anders cocked his head to one side, frowning as he asked, "How long can you hold your breath?"

Mitchell gave a bark of laughter. "That's it? That's your question? That's the one thing you want to know about vampire lore?"

"Well, I asked, didn't I?" Anders shifted into a more comfortable position, dropping the sheets of paper onto the floor by the couch. Mitchell shrugged, thought for a moment before replying. "I don't know. Indefinitely, I guess. I don't really have to breathe after all."

"You mean you've never even tried?"

"Of course I have!" Mitchell sounded insulted, and Anders had to smile at the way his eyebrows scrunched in indignance.

"How long could you hold it, then?"

"Ten years." The vampire shrugged. "Give or take." He yawned, shifted to come closer to Anders, leaning against his shoulder.

"Not bad." Anders admitted, running a hand through Mitchell's curly hair. "What made you take a breath after that long?"

Mitchell's smile was sunshine bright and just the slightest bit infatuated. "I saw you." He replied, and he had never looked more like a happy puppy than in that moment, even as Anders gave him an unimpressed stare. "You don't actually think I'd believe that, do you?"

"Not for a moment." Mitchell laughed, pressing a kiss to Anders' hair. "But secretly you think it was a nice thing for me to say, I know it." Anders had to fight to keep an answering smile off his face at that.

"You probably just really needed a smoke or something." The god muttered, but he didn't protest when Mitchell cupped his cheek and drew him in for a kiss.


	2. Coffee and New Neighbours- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the Summer FRE, Prompt #71: I just moved in and don’t have any coffee, I come over to borrow some from you.

"Shit." Fili pulled up a chair, climbing on it so he could see into the cupboard properly. It was filled with stuff he had been too lazy to properly put away properly the last night, practically overflowing with packets of spaghetti, rice, flour... but no coffee.

"Shitshitshitshit." he muttered, carefully lifting the various items onto the counter before finally admitting defeat and climbing down to instead throw open the doors of the other cupboards in the kitchen. Emptiness glared back at him, reminding him that he had yet to do some real grocery shopping.

Fili turned with a sigh to look at the boxes piled up against the opposite wall. Maybe there was some coffee in there... no, it was a foolish hope, and he'd already caused enough chaos in search of the blasted thing.

It was Sunday, rather late in the morning already. Fili had arrived late the past day, and after shopping for the necessities, he had forced himself to at least unpack the boxes marked 'Bedroom' in neat, black letters. After that he had all but collapsed into bed, opting for a late start the next day rather than set an alarm.

And now he didn't have any coffee.

Fili cursed under his breath, pulling his hair back into a loose ponytail and staring out the window for a long moment, contemplating his choices.

Well, he decided finally. There was only one thing for it. He needed to meet his new neighbours a bit earlier than expected.

The click of the door as it opened was strangely loud in the empty flat. The flat itself was a good one, situated in an old building near the edge of the city, larger than Fili's old one and considerably nicer. But now that Fili was no longer studying and had a little more money at his disposal, he thought he should have a better place.

He shut the door behind him, considering as he looked down the hallway before deciding to try the door directly opposite to him. Well, here's to hoping it wouldn't be some kind of crazed asshole like his last neighbour had been.

He had already raised his hand to knock when out of nowhere a voice sounded from behind him.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

Fili turned, startled, to see a man about his age leaning against the doorway of the apartment directly next to his.

"Oh." Fili suddenly didn't care if the person opposite him was Satan himself. This other neighbour would more than make up for it. He was absolutely _stunning,_ long and lean, with delicate hands and an angular face framed by long, dark hair spilling around his shoulders in silky tresses. There was a light grin on his face, easy and thrillingly honest. Fili gulped, knowing that he was staring but too spellbound to do anything about it.

"Mrs Sackville-Baggins lives there. She's an okay lady, as long as you stay out of her way, avoid eye-contact, and back away slowly if she notices you." The gorgeous stranger continued. "Seriously, if you need anything, ask me, I'm much nicer."

"Thanks for the warning." Fili smiled, finding his tongue just in time to avoid seeming like a complete idiot. "I'm Fili. I just moved in next door."

"Kili." The brunet replied, holding out a hand to Fili. "Pleased to meet you. I hope you're better than my previous neighbour."

"I'll try not to disappoint." Fili shook the proffered hand and Kili chuckled at his words. "As long as you aren't a complete dick and don't leave your empty beer bottles standing in front of your door and have loud parties, we'll get along all right."

"Well, in that case it seems we'll be okay." Fili promised and Kili leaned back against the doorway again, that beautiful, easy smile once again on his face. "Pleased to hear it. I'd hate it if I'd have to chase you away as well."

They were close enough now for Fili to see Kili's eyes. They were utterly bewitching. Fili had no words to describe their colour, but what struck him more than the colour was the warmth in them, that genuine spark of kindness that accompanied his teasing smile.

"So, what did you need? And please, whatever it is, don't ask Mrs Sackville-Baggins."

"Uh, coffee?" Fili tugged at a strand of his hair nervously. He really didn't want to mess this up, and chances were, those eyes were going to make him. "I don't have any and I wanted to ask if you have some?"

Kili pulled a face, making Fili smile. It was far too adorable. "Sorry," Kili shrugged, grimacing. "I don't drink coffee."

Fili felt his jaw drop, putting a hand to his heart in mock distress. "How do you _not drink coffee?"_ He asked in an insulted tone.

"I guess I never needed it." Kili shrugged again, this time smiling again. "I'm a ball of energy already, I think if I drank coffee as well I'd run up Mount Everest without a single break."

"Well, at least you'd break a few world records on the way."

Kili laughed, head tipped back slightly, and Fili caught himself wishing he could watch that laugh more often. _Mahal,_ he thought to himself, _you've known him for a grand total of five minutes, stop thinking like that._

"I have tea, though." Kili offered, stepping back and opening the door wider for Fili to come in, and who would he be to deny that invitation? "If you want. And cookies. And I can help you unpack, after."

"That would be a truly noble thing for you to do." Fili inclined his head in thanks as he stepped into the flat. "You're like a knight in shining armour."

"Even without coffee?" Kili teased, leading the way to the kitchen. Fili bit his lip, thoughtful. "We'll have to work on that. But every hero needs some flaws."


	3. Ikea- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the Summer FRE, Prompt #24: Ikea furniture build.
> 
> AKA Kili really, really doesn't like Ikea.

Kili hates Ikea. With a passion. Well, not Ikea, per se, but just about everything leading up to and coming after it. Whenever Fili announces a trip he gets grumpy for days in advance. But sometimes you just have to grit your teeth and get it over with, and so Fili bears Kili's moods with resignation and a lot of ice cream (the only thing that can get Kili to stop sulking for longer than fifteen minutes).

When the big day arrives, Fili will usually wake Kili with breakfast in bed, hoping to at least start the day off on the right foot. Kili will show his appreciation by way of kisses, gentle, fluttering touches placed strategically all over Fili's face and torso. This is followed by gently convincing Kili to actually get out of bed and start the long and rather arduous drive (made so difficult mainly by Kili scowling the entire way).

Today, though, Kili woke up first, and Fili knows immediately this time it's going to be a bad one.

The younger is sitting on the couch, already dressed, blanket pulled tight around his shoulders, eating a bowl of soggy cereal and looking utterly miserable. Fili almost feels sorry for him as he gets his own cereal and starts making the coffee.

"Morning." He greets, coming around behind Kili and leaning in for a good-morning kiss that the younger meets gladly. They eat in silence, Fili knowing full well that everything he can say now will only make Kili's already foul mood worse. He doesn't get it, really. Kili doesn't even mind Ikea itself that much. It's a quirk of his, being so worked up and moody about something he doesn't even _really_ dislike. And as his quirks go, it's an unpleasant one.

They manage to hit the road without difficulty, and though Fili even has a special Ikea-Playlist with Kili's favourite songs (what? It works sometimes) his foul mood doesn't lift. It's draining, the way Kili scowls at everyone and everything, and slams his hand on the horn like it's personally offended him. Fili thinks he might actually hate Ikea more than Kili just because of how put out it makes his boyfriend.

Once they actually get into the store Kili calms down a little. He even begins enjoying himself, bouncing around and pulling Fili towards a new discovery and drawing up imaginary plans for redecorating, although Fili keeps reminding him that they need a bathroom shelf, a couch table and a few other small necessities, nothing more. Kili doesn't seem to mind, babbling on enthusiastically about how _that would fit into the living room so perfectly, look, Fee_ while Fili jots down real choices that they really need.

They wander through the place like that for a long time, Fili managing to rein Kili in enough to find a suitable table, at least, before Kili finally gets bored of looking at furniture and making imaginary plans he never dreams of actually following through with. Soon the only sign that he isn't completely pissed off again is the way he occasionally points out weird names and utterly mispronounces them for the sake of terrible puns, pulling a face whenever Fili corrects him.

"How come you know all these names?" He asks Fili while the blond looks at the tag on a shelf. Fili raises his eyebrows at the price, immediately turning the tag over to read the back of it. "I'm Scandinavian, love," he replies distractedly, "it really isn't all that difficult for me."

At Kili's unimpressed grunt, Fili sighs and turns to face him. "Should we go grab some food?"

Fili almost laughs at the look of relief on Kili's face. "Please." The younger sounds about as desperate for the break as he looks. "That'd be great."

 

The rest of the shopping is completed quickly, Kili no longer in the mood to look farther than the first option, and Fili rather desperate to get his boyfriend back home before he goes on a killing spree. Fili drives on the way home, Kili putting his personal Ikea-Playlist on again before falling fast asleep in his seat.

Fili actually considers just waiting Kili's nap out in the car when they get home, knowing full well that Kili needs it, and also slightly swayed by how adorable his boyfriend looks, curled up as best as he can in the seat, the hood of his jumper pulled low over his face.

In the end, though, it can't be avoided, and Fili gives a short huff of regret before leaning over and tugging Kili's hood back up, pushing aside the hair falling over his forehead and reaching to shake his shoulder gently.

"Huh?" Kili wakes slowly, looking up at his boyfriend carefully as he unfolds from his huddled position with a wince, movements still uncoordinated.

"We're here." Fili replies in a hushed tone, leaning closer to give Kili a quick kiss before straightening up and getting out the car. Kili grunts, displeased at having been woken, but follows suit, and Fili smiles at the way he stumbles slightly as he gets out of the car, still disoriented and yawning impossibly widely.

 

Fili straightens up, rubbing his back with an expression of displeasure. He's been crouching over the bathroom shelf for the last half hour or so, and by now he just wants to see the back of it. He isn't looking forward to rearranging the entire bathroom purely for its sake, but that can wait until tomorrow. For now, he has to prioritise and check on Kili.

The first thing Fili notices when he enters the living room is that there is _no way_ Kili hasn't already lost half the small parts in this mess. He's sitting in the midst of a pile of plastic, cardboard, wooden pieces and screws, scowling at the construction manual as if he's preparing to slowly torture it until it divulges its secrets.

The second thing Fili notices is the fact that he has obviously already tried putting it together. More than once, possibly. Probably, even. Fili sighs as he carefully picks out his way through the mess. Kili turns around at the noise, expression immediately softening into a tired smile.

"Hi." Fili sinks down next to Kili, crossing his legs as he takes the construction manual from the younger gently. Kili gives it up without resistance, choosing to move and lean against Fili's shoulder instead of offering up protest.

"Are you already done?" His voice betrays his exhaustion, and Fili immediately feels bad for not just letting him rest.

"Yeah. Mine was easier, though." Fili replies, adding what he hopes will be a small comfort to Kili on basic instinct. Kili snorts. "Bullshit. I'm just crap at this." He pouts as he looked up at Fili, but the blond doesn't even notice his look, concentrating solely on the booklet. "Why are you so great at this stuff?"

"I'm Scandinavian, love." Fili reminds him again, distracted as he peers at the neat images printed on the pages.

"Firstly, being Scandinavian isn't a reason." Kili replies, brows furrowed as he tries to make sense of the images Fili so easily interprets. "Secondly, I didn't mean Ikea furniture. I meant general household stuff, and job stuff, and life stuff."

"What? _Life stuff?_ " It is Kili's tone more than his words those get Fili's attention, that pretend-joking tone with pain lurking far too close to the surface. Fili always hopes to live the rest of his life without ever hearing that tone of voice again. He puts down the manual and turns to Kili, putting an arm over his shoulder and pulling him close as the younger resumes talking.

"Yeah. Life stuff. I mean, you have a great job that you do well, you eat properly, you do sports, you schedule your time and ration your money and cook and clean and do everything and I... I still feel like I'm in college. No idea how to do what. I'm completely useless." Kili leans further into Fili, continuing just as Fili is about to speak. "You're so good at it, and I'm just a burden. Sometimes I wonder why you even put up with me. I mean, look at how childish I act because of fucking _Ikea."_

"You aren't useless." Fili curses himself the moment the words left his mouth, can't he think of anything better to say than generic "you aren't useless"? He has to sound like he means it, and this won't cut it. "We're a team, Kili, a household team, and you do just as much as I do. We aren't good at the same things, that's why we don't do the same things. And as for why I put up with you..."

"Don't say the wrong thing, now." Kili smiles, already cheered up slightly by Fili's words. The blond laughs, humming in thought as Kili watches impatiently. "Your cooking." He decides finally with a teasing grin. "It's just your cooking."

"Surely that isn't the extent of my talents and assets?" Kili smiles as he links his fingers with Fili's, relaxing back against the blond's chest. Fili pulls a face, pretending to have to think impossibly hard to come up with anything else.

"Another asset... This is really difficult, you know." Fili muses, yelping as Kili jabs him with a bony elbow before both break out into giggles.

When they calm down again, Fili pulls Kili up a bit and leans down to pepper kisses along the curve of his cheek and jaw. "You're perfect." He assures Kili between kisses. "I couldn't imagine my life any different, and I couldn't imagine you not being in it." He tips Kili's head back with his fingers, leans his forehead against the younger's. "I love you." He says firmly before leaning in to let their lips brush, and though the angle is uncomfortable, Kili couldn't wish for anything more as he surges forward to return the affection.

Fili noses into Kili's neck as they break the kiss, little more than a shy flutter of lips against Kili's collarbone before the blond straightens up. "Now, how about you go order some takeaway while I finish up here."

"That sounds like a plan." Kili smiles as he stands, turning at the door with a wicked glint in his eyes. "Bet you can't finish before the food gets here."

Fili grins broadly. "You're on."


	4. Black and White- Anders Johnson/John Mitchell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written for the SpringFRE! Prompt #4: Trip Down Memory Lane.

"Holy shi-" Anders stopped in the middle of the hallway, staring in shock at the state of his living room.

There were faded photos spread out over every surface; the couch, the floor, the coffee table, even the top of the stove. Some were new and glossy, some were old black-and-white photos, cracked and faded. And in the middle of the entire mess...

"What the fuck, Mitchell?" Anders demanded. The vampire looked up in shock, eyes innocently wide, and broke into a dazzling smile as he spotted the god. "Anders!" He greeted him happily, almost bouncing in his eagerness. Anders carefully picked his way through the room, trying his best not to step on any of the pictures, because no matter how stupid this was, those photos probably meant something to Mitchell.

"The hell are you doing?"

Mitchell pushed aside some of the photographs and pulled Anders down to sit beside him. "Well," he began, picking one up from the floor and examining it. "I moved the last box of things from my flat today. I'm finally all yours, and I can finally help finance this household now that I haven't got my own one going."

"That doesn't explain why my living room looks like the cleaning lady's worst nightmare."

"Well, I found a few of my old photos, and I thought I'd put them in an album. You know, to avoid the mess." Mitchell turned one photo over to look at the date scrawled on the back, then added it to a slowly growing pile by his right foot.

"This doesn't look like you're avoiding the mess." Anders didn't point out that Mitchell would likely need a library of photo albums. Mitchell just smiled and kissed him on the nose. "Well, I have to sort them first. By year, you know."

"By year." Anders' voice contained the first shreds of panic. "Mitchell, you're over a hundred years old."

"That's why there's so many of them." Mitchell didn't seem daunted, and only now did Anders notice that the piles around him were orderly stacks that might, actually, have been arranged by year.

"How am I supposed to cook dinner?" Anders stared at the kitchen. It, too, was covered in photographs. Mitchell just shrugged. "We'll order pizza."

"And where will we eat it?" Anders would never admit to the embarrassing panic in his voice. Mitchell grinned at him. "The bedroom." Anders raised his eyebrows and crossed his arms. "Oh, so you haven't taken over the bedroom yet?"

"Nope. And the bathroom's clear, too."

"Oh. Wow. How thoughtful of you." Mitchell didn't miss the sarcasm in Anders' voice and rolled his eyes at his boyfriend. "You could whine, or you could help me. Your choice."

"Why the hell would I help you?" Anders scowled, picking up a picture and looking at the date on the back. _19 fucking 32._ "Where was this?" He tried not to sound too curious.

Mitchell leaned over and broke out into a grin as he saw the photo. "Rome, back in the 1930s. Most stressful holiday ever. We almost got caught that time."

Anders smiled as Mitchell took it from his hand and added it to one of the piles. He picked up another photo, looking at the picture of a smiling woman and wondering who she was. Beside him, Mitchell gave a shout of joy and grabbed another photograph. It was far newer than some of the others, had probably been taken just a few years ago, in fact. "That's George and Annie." Mitchell declared, sounding like a proud father. Anders smiled and took the photo from him. This was Mitchell's life spread over the kitchen floor, he began to realize. And that made this entire mess infinitely precious.

*

"Do you have any pictures of me?" Anders asked Mitchell as they crouched on the ground a few days later. They had sorted the photos and chosen those that Mitchell wanted to put in the album, putting the rest back in the shoebox. Anders had noticed that although there were photos of the last year, of Auckland, of the ocean, even some that Anders could remember being taken, there wasn't a single one of him.

"What?" Mitchell looked up from where he was sticking photos into the album, flushing slightly.

"Well, there are pictures of a lot of your exes here, and your friends... but none of me." Despite the fact that Anders knew better, he felt a twinge of jealousy. It was stupid, he knew that. They were finally together, they were happy, Mitchell had recently moved in, for god's sake. He had no reason to feel unloved. Still, it hurt.

Mitchell flushed even darker. "I thought you didn't like your picture being taken."

Anders had to admit that Mitchell was right. He usually protested violently whenever he found a camera turned on him. But despite that, this time: "I don't think I'd mind. You're trying to remember your life. I... I want you to remember me, one day, when..."

He didn't dare finish his sentence.

Mitchell blushed to the tips of his ears and pulled out a pack of photos from the shoebox resting next to him, tossing them in Anders' lap. Anders picked them up, puzzlement clear on his features.

"John..." Anders asked slowly, and Mitchell made an embarrassed sound. Anders shook his head as he flipped through the photos. "Did you take all of these in secret?"

"I thought you didn't want me to. And I wanted something to remember you by."

It was still always a challenge for Anders to admit to all the things he felt for Mitchell. It was still a struggle to lean sideways into his embrace and tuck his head under Mitchell's chin, but Anders did anyway, relaxing as Mitchell's hand slid around his hip and a kiss was pressed to blond hair.

"I'm glad that you want to remember me."

 


	5. My Biological Romance- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the SpringFRE, Prompt #12: The last textbook I need for my class is sold out, and you, a worker at the bookstore, are mildly concerned about the lowkey breakdown I’m having over it. 
> 
> (I'm so sorry for that title.)

The day had been a long and difficult one. Kili felt as if waves were crashing down over him, sending his thoughts into turmoil and not pausing long enough to allow him to instate some kind of order. Everything around here was new and unfamiliar, and the smallest bump in the road was enough to throw Kili off track. It didn't help that he hadn't had the time for breakfast in the morning. It was one of those days were everything was a bit too much and he just wanted to go home and sleep his troubles away, but he knew that wouldn't solve everything, and so he found himself standing in front of the bookshop, staring at the list in his hand and hoping frantically that all the books were available.

He pushed the door open with a sigh, looking around and catching sight of a short blond behind the counter and heading towards him immediately.

The blond looked up as Kili approached, smiling as he removed his reading glasses, and Kili blamed his lightheaded state on the tiny nervous flutter that went through him at that. Sure, the bookshop employee was cute enough, especially with _those eyes,_ but that was completely besides the point.

"What can I help you with?" The blond asked with a smile, and Kili fumbled with the list in his hand, clearing his throat and stuttering the titles of the books. _Typical,_ he cursed himself. Now the bookshop employee would think he was a total idiot. He flushed, but the blond seemed unconcerned, telling him to please wait a minute and vanishing behind a shelf.

Kili played nervously with the zip of his jacket while he waited, the stress of the past few days combining to make him jumpy and somewhat lightheaded. "Here you go." The bookstore employee's voice brought him back into the present, along with the loud thump of a far too big pile of textbooks. "Unfortunately  _Campbell Biology_ isn't available at the moment. Is that all?"

Kili looked through the pile. One of the books wasn't there. And, as luck would have it, it was the one book that he _really_ needed. It was for Professor Dwalin Fundin's class, and not only was that man bloody terrifying, he had already shouted at Kili for not having it yet.

Kili sank down in the chair next to the counter, burying his face in his hands. Fuck it all. He was tired, and frustrated, and hungry, and this was the absolutely last thing he needed. Why today of all days? He ran his hands through his hair, tears pricking his eyes as his breath picked up pace, despite his attempts to keep calm. The only thing that could possibly make this day even worse was someone noticing his panic.

Of course, bookshop guy noticed. Of _fucking_ course.

"Hey mate, you okay?" Kili jumped as a warm hand settled on his shoulder, and fought the impulse to shrug it off. Bookshop guy was just trying to be nice. He didn't deserve Kili letting out his foul mood on him.

"I'm good." Kili promised, the words muffled from behind his fingers. "It's all good."

"It doesn't look like you're good." The blond replied with a smile in his voice, and was he really offering a tissue? Why was he being so nice? "Listen, if it's that important, I can order the textbook online."

"It's... it's okay. It's not that bad." Kili sniffled, accepting the tissue and trying for a smile, which bookshop guy returned. "Better?"

Kili considered for a moment before nodding. "Yeah. Better."

"Good." Bookshop guy's hand was still on his shoulder. Kili could feel the warmth through his shirt. It gave him a strange feeling of safety, even though bookshop guy was an absolute stranger. "I know what it's like. Everything just... boils over. And then, suddenly, it's fine again."

Kili sniffled a little. "Yeah. Thanks for your help."

"Don't worry about it. Now," Bookshop guy stood up. He was even shorter than Kili had expected. It was rather cute, actually. "How about we order that book, and then we go get a coffee and you tell me about your shitty day?"

Kili blinked, taken completely by surprise. Bookshop guy laughed loudly. "Did you really think I didn't have ulterior motives?" When Kili still didn't reply, the smile slowly slid off the blond's face. "I'm sorry, I just assumed... I didn't want to pressure you, I'm..."

"No," Kili interrupted quickly. "It's fine, and... that'd be great." He suddenly remembered that he didn't even know bookshop guy's name. "I'm Kili."

"Fili." Fili's smile was bright enough to light the entire shop.

*

Two days later, the textbook was lying on the kitchen table with the rest of the post. When Kili opened it in relief, he found a note inside. The handwriting was neat and simple, and Kili smiled as he recognised who had written it.

_I found one of these in the back room of the store :) Figured you'd appreciate it. Is our date on Friday still on?_

_-Fili_


	6. Noise- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the SpringFRE, Prompt #24: Post apocalypse AU, but instead of fire and brimstone, everything is just empty and quiet, except for them. 
> 
> Part of my Broken Strings AU which I've also posted here: [Broken Strings](http://www.archiveofourown.org/works/6749035/chapters/15424348).

The desert is, by nature, a quiet place. And though they had never known what it was like before their time, Fili and Kili both felt that it was even quieter now than ever before.

Sometimes, they imagined what the world must have been like, long ago. They imagined that once, there had been cities, roaring noise and walls of glass, wide streets empty of the dust and sand, and people, far more people in a single place than were in the entire world today.

Fili liked to imagine that the people of the past had known music, different music than they did, music that was stronger, and louder, because if the world is full of the sound of life, then the music must be played even louder if it wants to be heard.

When Fili and Kili played, their music was the only sound left in the world.

The two of them could spend weeks travelling on their own, through the desert, forgotten by the crumbling remains of humanity, with the only sound being their breathing. When the quiet got too loud, Kili would put down his bags (it was always Kili, because Kili never could stand the silence), unpack his fiddle, and he would play as they walked, until Fili joined in on his viola, and they chased away the silence together.

When the horizon stretched into infinity and the sand burned orange from the setting sun, when the dunes in front of them were a silent battlefield of broken things from a time long ago, Fili and Kili would play, as if they hoped it would bring back a time that was lost to them.

*

"Look, Kili." Fili bent down and brushed a thick layer of sand aside, and Kili kneeled next to him. It was a sign sticking out of the ground, half-buried in the desert sands, poking out as if in desperation, a last hope of survival. Kili tried to imagine how many people had come by here in the past few years, how many people had brushed aside the sand and read the faded, rust-specked letters and concluded that they were probably the first in a long time.

They could hardly make the writing out. It was faded and the sign rusted, and it was with difficulty that they managed to decipher an O, a H and something that might have been an F. They stayed there anyway, sand beginning to gather in the folds of their clothing.

"How long has it been, do you think, since people lived here?"

Fili looked out over the sand waste, at the corner of a roof poking out occasionally, a rusted piece of metal, before looking back at his brother. Kili was far too thin, he thought, far too young, and with a burning, hopeful look in his eyes.

"Longer than we care to think."

They watched as the wind blew through the sunken ruins. Kili's voice was faint when he spoke again. "Do you imagine sometimes what it would have been like if we'd been born... before all this. When the world was still normal."

Fili didn't really want to answer. The truth would be that yes, he did imagine, and sometimes it was better than what they had now, and sometimes it was worse. But Kili could be too hopeful for his own good, and he didn't want to encourage him. "This is normal now."

He stood up, and Kili followed him, running for a few steps to catch up. Fili looked over at his brother again as they weaved through the remains of the city, and wondered what he imagined, what he dreamed of.

They had already left the ruins behind and were walking on towards the horizon, accompanied by the steady sound of their own footsteps and dry breaths from dust-filled lungs, when Fili finally spoke.

"I think that it would have been louder."


	7. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”- Anders Johnson/John Mitchell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the SpringFRE, Prompt #32: “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”
> 
> Pure fluff from beginning to end.

"I have to admit, this is the best on yet." Mitchell leans in the doorway, staring at Anders as the blond fixes his tie. Mitchell can't really look away. He doesn't think Anders has ever looked this stunning. Anders has changed, Mitchell realizes, in the years they've been together. There's something softer in his eyes now, a kind of satisfaction, maybe even happiness. The calculating wariness there used to be has all but faded. Anders laughs more, now, and Mitchell know that it isn't only due to him, but he likes to think that he has a part in it.

Anders turns to him with a dry smile. "Enough, Vlad. Go get ready, we're going to be late."

Mitchell pouts and slinks into the room like a kicked puppy. "Do I really have to wear it?" He whines, glaring at the suit Anders has laid out. Anders sighs and leans over to give the vampire a kiss. "It's formal wear, Mitchell." He reprimands him. "You can't just show up to Ty's wedding in jeans." Anders laughs at Mitchell's glum face. "It isn't that bad, Mitch. Surely you've worn a suit before?"

"Ages ago. More than twenty years." Mitchell picks up the tie unenthusiastically, wrinkling his nose as if he has fished it straight out of the sewer. Anders rolls his eyes. "I'm going to go call Axl, see from where we should pick him up. You should be ready by the time I'm back."

Mitchell sighs, burying his hands deep in his pockets. "I've showered!" He shouts after Anders. "Isn't that enough?"

"No!" Comes the answer, and Mitchell picks up the shirt Anders has laid out for him, resigned to his fate.

 

Ties, Mitchell decides, are an invention of satan. He didn't even know it was possible to tie them wrong in so many different ways. He glares at the empty expanse of the mirror, for once wishing he had a reflection as he tries to open the knot. A reflection would make this so much easier.

There is laugh from the door, and he turns to Anders with a murderous expression. The blond puts up his hands in mock surrender. "I didn't say anything."

"Good." Mitchell snarls, turning back to the mirror as if he hopes his anger will make an image appear. When he's finally managed to open the knot, he looks helplessly at the length of cloth in his hands. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

Anders snickers. "It does make the entire wedding stress worth it."

Mitchell throws him a dirty look before fiddling with the tie again. Anders grins as he watches the vampire struggle.

"Can you help me?" Mitchell finally asks meekly, and Anders strides into the room with a smirk.

"And so the brave vampire is defeated." He teases as he loops the tie around Mitchell's neck. "Shut up." Mitchell replies, but his lips are quirking up in a smile. Anders deftly ties the knot and buttons Mitchell's suit jacket up before stepping back a little, hands resting on Mitchell's hips.

"You look great." He says softly, and Mitchell's heart melts a little at the tone of voice. Anders sounds as if he thinks Mitchell is something beautiful, something that's going to fade in a matter of minutes. Mitchell leans forward to press a kiss to Anders' lips. "Thank you." He says softly, wanting to say so much more than that.

"Thank me when I've managed to get your hair into some semblance of order." Anders murmurs back, running his hands through the vampire's dark curls. He looks Mitchell up and down with pursed lips. "You should wear the suit more often." He decides.

Mitchell pulls a face, tugging at the collar of his shirt. "I can't wait for you to take this off me, actually." He sighs. "I'm sure I'll appreciate it much more when it's on the floor."

"Later, Dracula." Anders promises, firmly leading Mitchell to the door.

 

"This is nice." Anders murmurs, taking a sip of wine as he looks out over the wedding party. Mitchell is standing next to him, fidgeting with his tie. Anders rolls his eyes at his boyfriend. "It's a tie, Mitchell, not a hangman's noose. Stop acting as if you're suffocating."

Mitchell rubs his throat. "It's too tight." He whines. Anders chuckles. "You don't even need to breathe, what do you care if it's too tight?"

Mitchell glares at him, expression immediately softening as Anders apologises with a kiss.

"You look gorgeous, babe." The blond assures him, and Mitchell smiles as he laces their fingers together.

Silence settles over them as they watch Ty and Dawn laughing together. The newlyweds both look radiant, glowing with happiness. Anders' fingers tighten around Mitchell's.

"Do you think that's going to be us someday?"

Mitchell shrugs. "Maybe."

He doesn't tell Anders that he's already planned the proposal.


	8. Hold my Hand- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written for the SpringFRE, Prompt #50: Crippling fear that’s funny to everyone except the person afraid.

 Kili's hand was warm in his, and the stars shining above were reflected in dark brown eyes. Fili heard the summer breeze rustling the leaves of the trees far above, felt the slight damp of the grass against his hand. It had rained in the evening, and he and Kili had sat inside with mugs of tea and a comfortable silence settling over them. It had been a slow day, the kind of day that felt like they were caught in a snowglobe, swirling slowly in their own little world.

When the rain had stopped and the sun was beginning to set, Kili had grabbed a blanket and Fili's hand, and Fili had been powerless to resist his boyfriend as he dragged him into the garden, to the very highest point and laid the blanket down on the cold, wet grass. They had sat there together for a long time, watching the sun dip below the horizon, watching each other and returning the smiles in each other's eyes.

They stayed there as it got darker and the first stars appeared slowly against the velvet sky, lying back with their shoulders touching and their breath slowing, hearts beating in unison. Though it was a warm summer's night, the damp was making Fili shiver, and he could tell from Kili's regular breathing that the younger was almost falling asleep.

"We should go inside."

"Just a bit longer, please?" Kili turned those infamous puppy eyes on him, and Fili sighed as he settled back down. "Just a bit."

Kili rested his head on Fili's chest and told him about the constellations he had made up, and Fili listened until Kili's voice turned slow and blurry. Finally Kili stopped speaking mid-sentence, forgetting to finish what he was saying and yawning instead.

"That's it." Fili sat up, and immediately Kili's grip on his hand tightened. "We're going inside."

"Five more minutes?" Kili begged. "I don't want to go inside yet." He looked at Fili pleadingly, but Fili was too good at reading him to be taken in. He felt the tension in Kili's grip and looked at him carefully. "Kili? Are you...scared?"

Kili froze for a moment, and then his gaze dropped to the ground, his voice coming small and ashamed. "...Yes."

Fili had to smile. "What are you scared of? Walking through your own garden in the dark?"

Kili's voice was even quieter, and Fili could see that he just wanted the ground to swallow him up. "Slugs." he admitted. "I can't see the slugs in the dark."

"That's it?" Fili tried to remain serious, but it was impossible. Kili, always so reckless, scared of seemingly nothing was afraid of... "You do know that slugs can't hurt you?" A giggle bubbled up in Fili's chest, and Kili pushed him in the chest. "It's a serious fear, Fi!"

Fili tried to put on a grave face. "So you're afraid of slugs."

Kili nodded. "And snails, yeah." Fili bit down another wave of laughter.

"So what do we do then? Stay here all night?"

Kili looked up from beneath his fringe. "You could carry me inside?" he suggested cautiously, and Fili grinned. "If you want me to carry you, you just have to ask, you don't have to pretend..." Kili's murderous glare shut him up. "Okay, come here then." Fili admitted defeat, opening his arms with a sigh. Kili practically leapt into the embrace, snuggling close as Fili stood up.

"You are aware that this is a bit ridiculous, right?" Fili asked as Kili gripped his shirt, burying his face in the crook of Fili's neck. Kili didn't answer and Fili smiled and pressed a kiss into his dark hair instead.

"Ugh, I think I stepped on one."

"Fili!!!" Kili's terrified shriek and Fili's answering laughter drifted through the night, carried away by the summer wind.


	9. Nursery Rhymes- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the SpringFRE, Prompt #64: Unexpected babysitting!

"How..." Fili looked around the kitchen in horrified amazement. "How did this even happen?"

The kitchen was splattered with porridge. The table was covered in it, the floor was splattered with it, it clung to the walls and to Kili, who sat in the middle of the entire mess looking absolutely woeful both at the state of the kitchen and the state of his hair.

"Please say that it wasn't you who failed this bad at eating porridge." Fili walked further into the room, wiped a chair clean and sat down on it. Kili shook his head mournfully, and Fili reached out to wipe a speck of porridge from his cheek. "What happened, then?"

"Well, I tried to make porridge for Frodo, and I don't know why, but he just didn't want to eat, and..."

"Wait, Frodo?" Fili interrupted his brother. "Why the h... why is Frodo here?"

Kili shook his head, as if the fact that a child that was not theirs was suddenly in their apartment although it should be at home was not important at all. "Bilbo forgot that he couldn't take Frodo to work today, and he couldn't organise a babysitter at such short notice, so..."

"He dropped him off here." Fili finished, and looked at the kitchen with a smile. "Where he proceeded to terrorise this household instead of Uncle's."

Kili looked even more regretful than before. "I don't know what I did wrong," he admitted, "he just wouldn't listen to me, I'm really sorry for all this mess, and..."

To be fair, Fili was surprised too. Frodo adored Kili. All children adored Kili. The brunet had a gift with them. "I suppose he's just having an off day." Fili comforted the younger. "Where is he now?"

Kili indicated the living room with a nod of his head. "Sleeping. He was pretty upset."

"See?" Fili's hand rested on Kili's shoulder, and he leaned in to drop a kiss to his boyfriend's forehead. "He was just grumpy because he was tired. Not your fault at all."

Kili's smile was still a little wan, but at least it was there. The blond smiled back and stood up, looking around the kitchen with a frown. "You go shower," he told Kili, picking some of the porridge from his long dark hair. "And change into some clean clothing. I'll clean up here, okay?"

*

When Kili came back down, freshly showered and wearing clean clothing, he was greeted with the sight of Fili standing at the clean countertops, Frodo balanced on his hip as they looked through recipe books together. Fili was talking, babbling mindlessly about what they could make for dinner, and Frodo was staring with wide eyes, letting out appreciative coos now and then.

Fili seemed completely engrossed in his plans, but Frodo noticed Kili coming in and turned toward him, a smile spreading across his features. He tugged excitedly at a handful of Fili's long blond hair, and with a wince of pain, Fili turned towards Kili, smiling as well and greeting him with a kiss.

"Sleep well?" Kili tapped Frodo on the nose, smiling at the toddler's excited squeal as chubby fingers reached for Kili's hand. Fili passed the wriggling child to Kili, bending over the recipe book as the younger entertained Frodo.

Kili watched with a smile as Fili began to bustle around the kitchen, stopping by Frodo to let the toddler grab at his long hair and to give Kili another quick kiss as he stole his hairtie.

*

There was something wonderfully domestic about Fili in an apron entertaining Frodo while they waited for the food to get ready. It made Kili's heart melt a little, and he fiddled with the engagement ring around his finger happily, fingers tracing over the warm metal.

"This is nice." Kili said finally, not saying what he was really thinking. Fili looked up, eyes crinkling at the corners, gaze going soft. "It is, isn't it?" he replied, and Kili knew that the blond understood what Kili himself hadn't yet said.

Fili noticed that Kili was still watching, spellbound, as Frodo grabbed at Fili's nose. The blond smiled at his fiancé, knowing what he was thinking. "One day, Kili." He promised.


	10. The Last Page- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kili is a little scared of growing up. Fili isn't really all that fussed. For the SpringFRE Prompt #68: Birthday/Name Day Gifts.

Kili sat in the seat of his brother's car, one leg propped up against the dashboard, staring out at the landscape and slowly realizing that he couldn't stay a teenager forever.

Maybe, seeing as tomorrow was his eighteenth birthday, this realisation was coming a little late, but he found the idea of having to start thinking about growing up nauseating and wanted to stay as far away from the whole thing as possible.

"What are you thinking about?" Fili's brow was furrowed lightly as he stared at the road ahead. Kili smiled. Trust Fili to know exactly when Kili needed to talk. It was as if he had a sixth sense for Kili's troubles.

"Just... you know. I'm going to be eighteen. I'm going to be a grown-up."

Fili chuckled. "Sorry to break the news to you, but being eighteen doesn't make you a grown-up. You have a few years yet, Kili."

"But I'm going to have to start growing up."

"I'm sure you'll find a way to avoid it." Fili assured him with a smile, and Kili fell into frustrated silence.

"It just... it feels a little like dying." He finally said. Fili roared with laughter. Kili had always had a flair for the dramatic. "You're not dying, Kili."

"But I'm going to have to change. I'm leaving this part of myself behind. It's terrifying, and I don't think I'm ready to become a grown-up." Kili sounded panicked enough that Fili hit the brakes and stopped on the side of the road, turning to his little brother with a concerned look.

"Kili," he took his brother's hands in his, "it's going to be all right. Okay? Nobody expects you to suddenly become a grown-up tomorrow. Nobody expects you to change who you are, and you don't have to. You don't have to be ready. After all, you're not going to be alone, right? Do you think mum and dad and Thorin and me will just leave you to fend for yourself?" Fili gave Kili a lopsided smile. "Especially me."

"No." Kili admitted. "See?" Fili gave a smile that Kili returned. "It's going to be fine. You have time to figure everything out. And now let's go, your birthday surprise is waiting for you."

The rest of the drive was accompanied by irregular bursts of music as Kili fiddled with the radio, trying to find music he liked.

"Close your eyes." Fili finally said, and Kili looked up curiously."Why?"

 Fili threw him a look that brooked no protest or questions. "Just close your eyes, Kili."

Kili obeyed with a sigh, feeling the car shudder to a halt underneath him. Fili leaned over, Kili's heart jumping at the proximity, and the younger's breath hitched at the brush of Fili's fingers against his cheekbones as the older brother secured a blindfold around Kili's head.

"There we go." Kili heard the car door open, felt Fili get out and close it, heard gravel crunch as he walked over to Kili's side and opened to door to help him out.

"Wouldn't all this be easier if I could see?" Kili asked petulantly as Fili took his hand and laid one hand around his shoulder to lead him away from the road. His brother's warm laughter sounded next to Kili's ear, and, to be honest, Kili couldn't complain, not when Fili was this close to him.

"This is supposed to be a surprise, Kili-bean." Kili rolled his eyes at the nickname, not that Fili could see his reaction. Fili was leading him downwards, on a rocky, well-trodden path. Near them, he could hear the cheerful babbling of a small brook.

"Here we are." Fili finally said, and Kili impatiently batted his hands away to get rid of the blindfold himself.

They were on an outcrop jutting out from the mountain slope, looking out over the valley. Behind them, the forest swayed and creaked gently in the breeze. Kili recognized this place. In his and Fili's shared childhood, the family had often come up here for a picnic. Kili had always loved it, loved being able to see the whole valley from above. Once Fili and Kili got older, the family had chosen more advanced hiking tours, and they had never come back here. And here he was, after ten or eleven years, and it felt like making peace with his childhood, like writing the epilogue for a book that he was finally satisfied with.

"That's not all, you know." Kili turned to Fili, just now remembering that he was still there. With a shy smile, Fili held up a picnic basket, and Kili laughed, rushing forward for a hug. "I also have a present for tomorrow, a real present I mean." Fili's voice was muffled against Kili's shoulder. "But I thought that today we should just enjoy your last evening of being a teenager."

Fili set down the basket, spread out the picnic blanket, and Kili had to laugh again as the contents of the basket were revealed. It was all the food he had loved as a child, and later, as a teenager. It was like looking at a timeline of all the unhealthy yet wonderful food he had ever eaten.

Fili was still looking at him with that shy smile, and Kili didn't quite know what came over him. Perhaps it was the look in Fili's eyes. Perhaps Kili's fear of letting go, of leaving Fili behind before he had told him everything he wanted to. Perhaps it was sheer madness. But whatever it was, Kili was pretty sure it took over his body in that moment that he leaned in and pressed a kiss to Fili's lips.

If this picnic felt like writing an epilogue to the book he had just finished, the kiss felt like the prologue to the one he was just beginning. And when he pulled back and looked up at his brother nervously, and when Fili leaned in with a smile to kiss him back, it felt like they were both writing their life anew.


	11. Kill of the Night- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the SpringFRE #70: “Do you think I won’t shoot you?” 
> 
> Aka that AU in which Kili is a vampire and Fili is his cop neighbour.

Fili often went to sleep late, and usually he would curse himself for it in the morning, but this evening, it was a stroke of luck.

He was reading  under his covers when he heard a thump from the other side of the wall, and the telltale sound of voices, and bedsprings creaking. Fili sighed, snapped his book shut and stood up. He knew what was coming, the walls of his apartment were far too thin, and the fact that his neighbour's bedroom was adjoining to his made it all even worse. Hoping to be able to escape the whole thing, he padded into the kitchen and made himself a cup of tea. Of soothing tea, because losing his temper just wouldn't do.

He returned to his bedroom just in time to hear a muffled scream, and shook his head. At least maybe now it'd be over.

The silence lasted only a few seconds before a loud thump chased through the room, making Fili sit up in his bed and bite back a curse. It had sounded like someone falling out of bed. The sound was followed by another series of thumps and bumps, and muffled curses.

Fili pulled on pyjama bottoms and slippers, frowning. His cop instincts were kicking in, and he couldn't just leave noises like that uninvestigated. He put aside his tea, and, on a whim, grabbed his handgun and police ID as well.

When he opened the door to his apartment, he was treated to a sight that he hadn't seen in his entire professional career and hoped he never had to again.

His neighbour, someone who he had previously thought of as handsome, charming and funny, if a little irresponsible, was dragging a dead body wrapped in a sheet out of his door.

"Freeze." Fili's voice cracked as he pointed the gun at his neighbour, and the young man, turned around in shock, eyes wide underneath a tangled mess of brunet hair. There was blood on his hands, chest and face, and Fili grimaced as he wondered what the hell had happened in that bedroom.

"Oh, hey." The neighbour smiled, casual as you please. Fili just stared. Following his gaze, the neighbour gave a soft 'ah' of realization and indicated the dead body. "I usually try to invite myself to their places, saves me the bother of hiding the body. But this guy was kind of adamant. Sorry about the noise."

Fili's hands shook as he tried to match his neighbour's calm tone. "You're under arrest."

"That's nice." The neighbour turned away again, and Fili gave up trying not to panic. "How are you so calm?" He demanded. "Do you think I won't shoot you?"

The neighbour shrugged. "I just don't think it would do much."

Instead of an answer, Fili released the safety catch. Finally, the neighbour seemed at least somewhat fazed, putting up his hands. "Woah, careful where you point that thing."

"You're under arrest." Fili repeated, more firmly now that the other seemed at least slightly concerned about the whole matter.

"Please," the neighbour's eyes widened in fear, and Fili suddenly wondered how old he was. In his early twenties, maybe. "I can explain. I swear, I can explain everything."

Well. Fili had always been curious. And there had to be some kind of story behind all this. But still... it felt like hours that they stood there, Fili's hands sweaty as they gripped the gun, the neighbours eyes wide in fear, a dead body at their feet.

"Alright." Fili finally said, though his tone was no less guarded. "I'm putting you in handcuffs, and then I'm changing into clothes and we're going to a very crowded place where you can explain yourself to me."

The neighbour kicked the corpse back inside his flat, shut the door and extended his hands. "Fine by me."


	12. Stings and Bruises- Anders Johnson/John Mitchell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the SpringFRE, Prompt #114: “I don’t hate you."

When Anders comes home, Mitchell is passed out on the couch with the TV blaring in the background, bottles stacked at his feet. One bottle is loosely gripped in his hand, and that and the stench leaves no doubt as to what happened. Anders sighs as he crouches down by the vampire, pushing dark curls out of his face. Mitchell looks pale and drained, and much thinner than usual. Anders lays a hand on the vampire's sweaty brow with a sad sigh, then stands up and carries the bottles to the kitchen.

He tries to think back to the last time Mitchell fed, and realises it must have been over a month ago. He sighs again as he goes back into the living room and turns off the television before draping a blanket over his sleeping boyfriend. Even in sleep, Mitchell is frowning, forehead lined deeply, eyebrows scrunching together.

Anders loosens his tie and ponders a drink, but with the stark reminder of the futility of alcohol passed out on the couch, he doesn't really feel like it.

 

When Mitchell comes to, Anders is sitting at the end of the couch, watching television with the volume turned low. The blond doesn't give any sign of noticing that Mitchell is awake, but when the vampire sits up, Anders' voice breaks through the silence.

"I thought you knew that alcohol doesn't work."

Mitchell groans. Alcohol certainly doesn't have an effect on him, but for some strange reason, he still feels absolutely miserable afterwards. Maybe it's just the shame of having fallen to the temptation.

"I know."

They sit in bitter silence. Mitchell can feel the disapproval radiating from Anders, and he wants to shout at him, tell him to stop being such a fucking hypocrite, they both drink too much even though it doesn't ever help, but he's too tired and too drained for an argument.

"What was it this time?" Anders' voice drips acid.

Mitchell's lips form a thin white line. "Box Tunnel 20," he admits, voice trembling with anger at himself. He doesn't want to remember, but it haunts him, the blood, the faces.

Anders' back is tense, an expanse of coiled muscle, like a wall of ice separating them from each other. Mitchell feels tears prick his eyes. "You hate me." He states flatly, gaze focusing on the hole in his socks. He feels deflated, exhausted. The taste of alcohol burns in his mouth, lingering shame. It makes sense that Anders should hate him. More sense at least than Anders loving him.

Anders sighs, and Mitchell startles as he turns off the television, the sudden silence enveloping them both. Neither of them says anything. Anders is still tense, refuses to even look at Mitchell. Mitchell bites his lip, scrubs the tears from his eyes and stands. "Alright then."

 

Mitchell leans against the railing, blowing out cigarette smoke into the evening air and trying to get rid of the acrid taste of guilt.

He doesn't turn as footsteps sound behind him, knowing full well that it is Anders joining him on their balcony. The blond stops a little behind him, as if he doesn't dare come too close. Mitchell knows that Anders is hoping he will start talking first. He doesn't.

"I don't hate you, you know." Anders finally says. He sounds almost as drained as Mitchell feels. Mitchell huffs loudly and flicks cigarette ash over the edge of the balcony. "You sure don't act like it." He replies, knowing that he is being too harsh on Anders.

"Well, what you've done isn't easy to forgive." Mitchell hears the bite behind Anders' words, but also the pain. This is what they are like. On the warpath, trying to hurt and hurt back, until they crawl back to each other and patch up the wounds.

Mitchell just wants to lay down his guns and fall back into Anders' arms, but he forces himself to remember how often Anders has ever said 'I love you' and lets the bitterness and the unhappiness guide his words. "You're not exactly a saint yourself."

For a moment they stand there, words quivering with tension in the still air.

Anders breaks the silence, snaps it like a dry twig. "I'm sorry."

Mitchell closes his eyes, savours the sound, because this is the closest to 'I love you' that he's going to get. "So am I."

In the end, they're never strong enough to stay apart.


	13. Yellow- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the SpringFRE, Prompt #118: The color yellow.

Yellow was the colour of Fili's hair in Kili's shaky crayon drawings when he was small. Kili complained that he didn't have a crayon that was the real colour of Fili's hair, but secretly he liked the fact that in his drawings, his brother's hair was the same colour as the sun.

Kili had always wanted hair like Fili's. He had grown it out when Fili had grown it out, cut it off when Fili cut it off, until he decided when he was nine to keep his hair long. One thing he couldn't change was the colour. Fili's hair was the colour of dandelions in spring, of sunflowers and of things that made Kili happy.

 

Yellow was the colour of the schoolbus that took Fili away from Kili for the first time in his life. Kili suddenly didn't know what to do during those long days Fili wasn't there. Kili had never really spent time on his own. Fili had always been there with him. They thought up the wildest games together, and Kili soon found out that being a pirate or an astronaut or a world-famous chef just wasn't as fun on his own.

He got his mother to teach him how to read the clock, and he memorised Fili's schedule so that everytime the bus drew up at the stop, he could sit on the fence on the edge of their garden, waiting patiently for his brother to finally arrive.

Another thing Kili had a hard time getting used to was Fili suddenly having school friends. School friends that didn't care for Kili, school friends that got to be Fili's new co-pilot, Fili's new right-hand man and passenger in cardboard-box cars.

Kili came to dread those days that Fili had friends over, knowing full well that he was going to be pushed aside, having to spend his day alone, trying to avoid his brother. Fili was always strangely mean to Kili whenever there were classmates around. It stung, though Kili wouldn't admit it, and so he tried his best to stay out of the way of Fili's friends, and tried to explore mars on his own.

 

Yellow was the colour of the schoolbus that brought Kili to school years later. He finally learned about Fili's world, and had classmates of his own that he wanted to spend time with. Fili seemed less ashamed of his younger brother now that Kili was in school, and they started exploring the solar system together again, told each other stories of what they had learned in school that day, and brought it to life in their backyard. They pillaged Rome together, took the first steps on the moon, climbed Mount Everest for the first time and staged Caesar's assassination.

Kili's memories of those first school years were yellow. The yellow of Fili's hair, of sunshine through the windows of their room, of dandelions in the garden outside, of the sunflowers growing on the border of the garden, separating their little reality from the rest of the world.

 

Later, yellow became the colour of memories. The garden was gone, the house sold when their father died and their mother couldn't make the rent. Their games were gone, Rome left for dead, the moon an endless lonely expanse, and Mount Everest left unexplored as first Fili, then Kili took part-time jobs, both trying to scrape together enough money for college. The sunflowers were gone too, dug up by the new owners of the house. There were new children playing in the yard now. Kili turned away, buried his hands in the pockets of his tattered jacket, and prayed to whatever deity could hear him that those kids got to stay children for just a bit longer than he had been allowed to.

 

Yellow was the colour of the car that took Fili away from him for the second time. His brother had gotten a scholarship, a chance at a good education despite the fact that their mother still worked multiple jobs just to pay the bills. Kili put aside money to buy Fili a suit for his birthday, because he knew that Fili would never waste money on something so frivolous, and he also knew that Fili owned hardly any clothes that weren't patched and worn, and certainly nothing that could pass as formal.

No matter how he tried, Kili couldn't fight down a wave of jealousy when Fili hugged him tight. Kili knew that his grades were nowhere near good enough to win a scholarship, just as he knew that his and Fili's relationship wouldn't be able to survive the college years. Not when Fili was on the other side of the world, and Kili might never even get past his city's borders.

 

Yellow was the peeling colour of Fili's front door. Kili remembered dandelions, and sunflowers, and faded pictures of two small boys conquering the world. He brought up a hand, resting it against the wood and trying to bring up the courage to knock.

He supposed he should feel proud. He had come far, despite the challenges, almost as far as Fili had. But he just felt drained, and scared, and yellow wasn't the colour of things that made him happy anymore. Yellow was the colour of walls he stared at for hours on end, wondering if he had gone wrong, and where.

Kili tried to remember a crayon figure with bright yellow crayon hair, tried to remember dandelions and the fall of Rome, and he raised his hand and knocked.


	14. Purple and Red- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the SpringFRE, Prompt 129: "You're bleeding."

"I'm home!"

The voice is familiar, a ritual, followed by the sound of keys dropping into the bowl by the door. Fili smiles, sinking back into the cushions. "Hey!" He calls back. "How was your day?"

Kili's usual reply is a grumble, except when something really good happened. If something really good happened, he'll bounce over to the couch, not even bothering with taking off his boots, already prattling on about the events of the day. Otherwise he'll take a while, pour himself a glass of water, sit down on the couch alongside Fili and begin talking. Fili listens patiently, no matter how trivial the things Kili tells. It's ten minutes of his day that are for Kili only, and Fili wouldn't think of giving them up.

So when Kili's usual grumble isn't forthcoming, Fili worries. "Kili?" He asks again, twisting towards the hallway. "How was your day?" He repeats.

"Fine," Kili replies, obviously distracted. "It was fine."

Fili frowns. That's a worrying reply, if ever he heard one. Kili slinks through the doorway as if he's ashamed, hood pulled up. Fili stands up, immediately worried. "Kili?"

"Hey." Kili's voice is flat, and Fili immediately strides over, grabs Kili by the shoulders. Kili flinches, but Fili doesn't know if it's because of pain or if Kili's just trying to avoid him.

"You're bleeding."

Bleeding doesn't quite cover it. Kili's lip is split, jaw bruised, his nose bleeding and one eye beginning to swell shut, and Fili can see his bruised collarbones.

"What happened?" Fili pushes the hood down, tilting Kili's face towards him and ignoring the younger's struggles.

"Nothing much." Kili mutters as Fili drags him to the couch and pushes him down on it. Fili raises an eyebrow. "Nothing much." He repeats.

"There were these guys..."

"These guys?" Fili rummages through the kitchen, searching for an ice pack and a dishcloth to wrap it up in.

"They live near the shop. Work near the shop. Whatever. They usually just call me names..." Kili presses the ice pack onto his jaw as Fili pulls out a first aid kit. "They attacked me." He winces as Fili wipes the blood from his lip. "I tried to fight back, but they outnumbered me four to one."

"They did this?" Fili motions Kili to take off his hoodie and shirt, staring in horror at the patchwork of bruises on the younger's torso. Kili nods. "Yeah. Dragged me into a back alley. Not that anyone at that shite job would've cared if they'd beat me up right in front of them."

Fili purses his lips. Kili's job is unsafe at best. None of his coworkers approve of Kili's sexuality, although they can't openly say anything. They've both already debated if Kili should resign, try and find a place where he's safer. What's happening right now is exactly the kind of situation they've been fearing.

"Why didn't you tell me about them?" He asks gently. Kili shrugs, but Fili can see the conflict in his eyes. "I didn't want you to worry," he confesses quietly, almost as if he's scared of something. Fili frowns, looks up at Kili. "You should have told me anyway, Kili. This is something I should have worried about."

Kili's look of shame makes Fili's heart stop in his chest. "I'm sorry."

"So am I." Fili replies softly, hoping to be able to convey to Kili all those things he can't quite say.

"Do you think we should go to hospital?" Kili asks, voice small and scared as Fili runs his hands along the bruises on his torso. Fili shakes his head. He isn't a medical expert, but Kili doesn't seem to be in any danger.

"Let's see how you feel in a day or two." He decides. "But you're definitely staying home for a while."

Kili nods, sucking in a deep breath as Fili prods at the scratches and bruises. Kili is silent as Fili patches him up as best he can, except for laboured inhales as he struggles to breathe past the pain. Finally, he breaks his silence.

"Fili?" Fili looks up at Kili's tearful voice. "Fili, I don't want to go back there."

Fili sits up and takes Kili in his arms, hugging him tight to his chest. "You're not going to, love." He promises. "Never again. I'm calling your boss tomorrow."

"But we need the money." Kili's fingers wind tightly into Fili's sweater. Fili presses a kiss to the top of Kili's head, a deep line appearing between his eyebrows. "We'll manage. We'll just have to watch our money until you get a new job. One that's in your field, this time." Fili tips Kili's head up and looks into his eyes. "The most important thing is that you're alright. You're safe."

Kili's eyes fill with tears as he snuggles even closer. "I'm so glad I've got you."

"I'm glad too." Fili screws his eyes shut and inhales Kili's scent, trying to memorise it, trying to make it a part of him. "It's going to be alright, Kili."

"I know." Kili's hand finds Fili's and their fingers lace together tightly. "I know," Kili repeats. "I don't know how, but it'll all be better soon."

Fili breaths in, breaths out. "Tell me about it."

Kili smiles, and takes a deep breath, ignoring the sharp pang of pain at the movement. "We'll get better jobs. Both of us. I'll find one in my field. You'll be able to go back to uni. You'll be a teacher. We'll have a better apartment, in a better part of town. And your parents will come and visit us. They'll see how hard you've worked to get here, and then they'll forgive you."

"That sounds good." Fili noses into Kili's hair, breaths a kiss onto the shell of his ear. "Where do we begin?"

"By ordering pizza, maybe?" Kili suggests as his stomach rumbles loudly.

Fili giggles. "That sounds like a really good start."


	15. Apple Pancakes- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the SpringFRE, Prompt 132: Sleepy Domestic Fluff.

"Kili." Fili shook Kili gently. "Hey, Kili. Wake up."

Kili groaned in reply, trying to swat Fili away irritably. Fili just laughed and leaned in close, kissing Kili on the cheek. "Kili, you need to get to work."

"Don't wanna," Kili slurred back. Fili smiled. "Yeah, I don't want to either. Come on, you need to get some breakfast in you."

Kili rolled over, flopping onto Fili and burying his face in the crook of his neck. "Are you sure it isn't Saturday?"

Fili sighed. Every day was the same. Kili simply wasn't a morning person. To tell the truth, it annoyed the hell out of Fili. Not even Kili being all cute and mussed in his pyjamas could fix that.

"I'm very sure." Fili assured his boyfriend. Kili's hand found a lock of Fili's hair and tugged on it lazily, looking up at Fili with big brown eyes. "Can you make pancakes?"

Fili rolled his eyes and sighed again. He really should be able to resist his boyfriend by now. Kili pouted up at him, and Fili had to smile. He could understand why Kili didn't want to get up. It was warm, and secure, Kili's body tucked against his, breath warm against his cheek. He didn't think it was possible to get much happier than this. It made him want to wake up with Kili every day, to come home in the evenings and find him on the couch watching those terrible documentaries he loved so much.

"Ok." Fili's lips brushed against Kili's briefly. "I'll make you pancakes," Fili grinned as Kili's eyes lit up, "if you promise to move in with me."

Kili groaned as he flopped back down onto the bed. "Blackmail, that's what this is," he grumbled, "You should be ashamed of yourself."

Fili laughed loudly. "Well, are you ready to accept my terms, or do I have to send you to work hungry today?"

Kili looked up at Fili with a pout. "That's a lot to ask in return for pancakes, you know."

"Apple pancakes." Fili promised. "With cinnamon."

"You drive a hard bargain." Kili leaned in for a kiss. "Well, what other choice do I have?"

Fili flashed him a grin to hide the way warm shivers were dancing down his spine at the thought of Kili living with him. "Better get to making those pancakes, then."

 

It was the smell of fresh pancakes finally forced Kili to get out of bed. When he stumbled into the kitchen, yawning and rubbing his eyes, Fili had already made coffee as well, and the pancakes were a steaming heap on both their plates.

"You're a saint." Kili sat down, mood instantly lifted. Fili smiled at him. "I know."

They were midway through breakfast when Fili cleared his throat. "So, about moving in..."

Kili stopped with his fork halfway to his mouth, eyes wide. "You were serious about that?"

"Of course I was bloody serious about that!"

Kili stared at him in silence, until the piece of pancake balancing precariously on his fork fell back onto his plate, breaking the spell. "Holy shit, Fi, you can't just..."

Fili's peals of laughter were cut short as he was dragged in for a kiss.


	16. The End of the Road- Fili/Kili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the SpringFRE, Propt 160: "Is this the end of the road?"

It wasn't much of a road to speak of, really. It was a stretch of cracked, black rock that their parents said had once been called _tarmac,_ back when such words still held meaning. Now and then it would be covered completely by the ever-moving sand, just to reappear again once the wind blew in a different direction.

When they were children, they had played on that road sometimes. It started just a few steps from the last house of their village, slowly rising out of the hard-packed dirt and the dust like the spine of an ancient dragon.

They had jumped over the deep cracks, trying to move only on the small patches of intact asphalt. Some of the cracks were fine little crevasses, tendrils of sand amid the stretch of black, while others were bigger, where the road looked like it had been pulled apart over the years.

Once, after one of those heavy desert rainfalls they got sometimes, Fili had found a tiny plant shoot growing in one of the larger cracks of the road. Excitedly, he had called over Kili, and they had stared at that tiny little shoot in wonderment. Fili didn't think he had ever seen something that green, even in the vegetable garden their parents had planted in their back yard.

Every day, Fili would fill a battered tin cup with dirty bathwater, the water that their father used to water their own plants. He would run out beyond the city, Kili hot on his heels, and they would find the little crack, and water the delicate shoot, and let out excited squeals of delight when they noticed it had grown.

It was only a matter of time before it withered, but how could they have known that? They had never thought farther than tomorrow. It took only two days of forgetting to go out and water it, two days of burning desert sun, and the brightest green they had ever seen faded to a yellow shade they knew all too well.

"Things aren't destined to live long, not in this place." Their mother tried to comfort them. "Nothing gets to cling on to life forever, and all things that grow are fragile. Especially here. Especially now. Nothing is ever easy."

"But that doesn't mean you shouldn't try, does it?" Fili asked with wide eyes.

"No, it doesn't," Dìs smiled, "it just means you need to try harder."

"Is it our fault the plant died?" Kili wrung his chubby little hands, brows knotting in concern.

"The only thing that you're responsible for is that it lived at all, darling." Dìs pressed a kiss to Kili's hair.

 

It was when their father died that Fili first decided he wanted to run away.

They left the buzz of the village behind, following the road farther than they had ever dared before. The cracks beneath their feet felt like their world was tearing itself apart, and when Kili's hand slid into Fili's, it felt like they were stretched into black crevasses, inviting them to jump.

They didn't talk, let the sound of their feet on old asphalt announce their grief instead.

When their village became hazy on the horizon, they stopped. Fili looked back, and he suddenly felt a violent surge of hate for those cowering, sand-coloured buildings, lined with dust and riddled with fear. They had spent their lives in that village, hiding from the world as if they weren't its last hope. Fili despised it all, the hard-trodden dirt of the streets, the drunks on the front porch of the only remaining bar, the haggard, bitter people gathered around the well, hoping to get an extra bucket of water if they only stuck around long enough, the faded ledger used for distributing rations of water and medicine. He despised the people, despised the brownish-green of the dust-covered vegetable gardens, despised the broken-down house on the edge of the village with _'this empire has fallen'_ scrawled in big white letters on the side, because there had never been an empire to begin with, not in his lifetime.

"We're going to leave, one day." He promised his brother, and Kili looked at him with wide eyes that were too big for his face. Kili was taller than Fili now, gangly and far too thin. Fili wanted to protect him, even if he didn't know how.

"I know." Kili replied with a quiet voice that went through Fili like thunder. Kili looked down at their boots, tattered and worn thin over the years. "This road was made for us."

As they walked back, the cracks felt like trenches spreading out beneath them, tearing apart everything they knew, and he wished he had his viola so he could try and put their world back together with its melody.

 

Fili and Kili left their hometown on an unusually cold day, a few months after Kili's eighteenth birthday. The wind was howling through the streets, and they both wore goggles and scarves over their faces to shield themselves from the sand. As they walked through the streets, their neighbours stepped out onto their porches and watched, silently, hopefully.

Kili's hand found Fili's as they came to the beginning of the road. They turned around one last time, looked out over the crumbling villages, the silent people standing on their porches, hands on their children's shoulders as they watched the first people leave town for over forty years.

Fili raised his hand in a silent goodbye, and together, the brothers turned and took the first step towards the horizon.

Behind them, the wind howled through deserted streets.

 

They walked through that first night, both too scared that if they stopped for too long, they would turn back. The stars were shining high and bright above them, more than they had ever seen, like scattered grains of sand across the night sky.

At dawn the next day, the road, their last reminder of a home they had abandoned, faded into nothing, ending in a pile of rocks and a street sign of a dead city.

"Is this the end of the road?"

"No." Kili sounded more hopeful than truthful. "It's the beginning."

**Author's Note:**

> I'm also on Tumblr! Right [here](http://www.thegoddessidunn.tumblr.com)!


End file.
